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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/28231467">Essential</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/sideofzemblanity/pseuds/sideofzemblanity'>sideofzemblanity</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Jurassic World Trilogy (Movies), One Direction (Band)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Bottom Louis, Fluffy sometimes, Harry is 21, Harry is Owen, Harry trains raptors, Liza is Louis’ niece and Bear is his nephew, Louis and Liam are brothers, Louis is 22, Louis is Claire, Louis runs the park, M/M, Niall is Harry’s bestie and they work together, Sassy Louis, Sexual Tension, Sorry Not Sorry, Top Harry, Zayn is Louis’ best friend, basically the movie put into words and then boom some extra scenes, doesnt like taking orders, harry is hot af, kinda cute but also spicy, long-haired Harry, louis is big on practicality and organization, more like half lovers to enemies to lovers, multiple POVs, slight dom/sub but not really, so like not technically enemies to lovers, they kiss in serious moment, they used to hook up, this tag section is a mess oh my, unless it from harry...</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-12-27</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-12-27</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-18 01:20:05</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Mature</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>17,110</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/28231467</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/sideofzemblanity/pseuds/sideofzemblanity</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>ESSENTIAL [adj.] : absolutely necessary; extremely important</p><p>———</p><p>There four things Louis found absolutely essential: practicality, protocol, common sense, and avoiding Harry Styles. Which is completely doable when you run a dinosaur park and are held to a higher standard, one of practicality, protocol, and common sense that, fortunately, men like Harry Styles are far from. </p><p>When the failures of Jurassic Park loom over you, there is one golden rule that resides above all essentials: do not let a carnivorous dinosaur escape and eat people. The Indominus Rex is the biggest and the most dangerous dinosaur to ever live, a genetic hybrid that is based off of the already feared T. Rex. So when disaster strikes, Louis has to break practically all of his essentials and focus on three things: not getting eaten, saving his nephew and niece, and getting along with Harry Styles. </p><p>Essentially, he’s screwed.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Harry Styles/Louis Tomlinson, Liam Payne/Maya Henry(brief), Louis Tomlinson &amp; Liam Payne, Louis Tomlinson &amp; Zayn Malik, Niall Horan &amp; Harry Styles, a bit of ot5 :), minor Louis Tomlinson &amp; Niall Horan</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>3</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>50</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Essential</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>op i was watching jurassic world and i was like hey, why the fuck not</p><p>so here you go, like seventeen thousand words of me writing a stupid au</p><p>i hope you guys like it hhhh</p><p>i might add like a bonus seggs scene that i deleted, but like let me know if that’s something anyone wants pfft </p><p>lmk what you think! i love feedback from u guys :)</p><p>here we go...</p><p>*warnings* - violence, death, oh fuck i think i just saw pilgrim harry nvm it was just a dinosaur eating someone, some seggy stuff, language, idk, dinosaurs op</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Louis was successful for someone who had been born in Doncaster, England with no expectation for him to become anything. Yet here he was, at the age of twenty-two, practically running an ecosystem that had been extinct for millions of years. He was intelligent, built himself into something more than anyone ever expected him to become. Outstripping all of the limitations that got in his way, Louis was dedicated to the practical organization of life that fuelled his success.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He knew that a part of him should be concerned with the fact that his niece and nephew would be here by now, he just pushed it aside because quite frankly, Louis did not have the time. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Louise Teasdale, vice-president...Simon Cowell, bad hair...Roman Kemp, deserves better...Lou, Simon, Roman. Lou, Simon, Roman. And I am Louis Tomlinson.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Brushing back the silk sleeve of the Burberry button up he was wearing, Louis fought a scowl, “Three minutes late.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The elevator he was in halted and he forced his lips into the charming smile that had helped carry him through school as the doors slipped open, “Welcome to Jurassic World.”</span>
</p>
<hr/><p>
  <span>The walk through the lab was one that Louis had walked a thousand times, investors bobbing along behind him as he walked confidently through tourists.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“While year-over-year revenue continues to climb, operating costs are higher than ever. Our shareholders have been patient, but let's be honest, no one's impressed by a dinosaur anymore,” he gestured to them, walking through the glass doors of the lab, “Twenty years ago, de-extinction was right up there with magic. These days, kids look at a Stegosaurus like an elephant from the city zoo. That doesn't mean asset development has fallen behind. Our DNA excavators discover new species every year.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The investors, </span>
  <em>
    <span>Louise, Simon, and Roman,</span>
  </em>
  <span> he repeated in his head, looked around, bored expressions plastered on their faces, but the awe in their eyes gave them away. Louis smiled wryly again, the headache he had woken up with throbbing loudly in his ears, “But consumers want them bigger. Louder. More teeth.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Folding his hands, he continued, catching the looks exchanged between the three, “The good news? Our advances in gene splicing have opened up a whole new frontier. We've learned more from genetics in the past decade than a century of digging up bones,” he walks backwards, leading them to a cluster of computer screens, “So, when you say you want to sponsor an attraction, what do you have in mind?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The vice-president, Louise, gives him a once-over, “We want to be thrilled.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Louis wanted to snark, say that she should get in line with thousands of others, but he just twists his lips, “Oh, but don’t we all?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>His fingers brush across the screen, spinning the double helix that he could explain scientifically, but he was here to sell, not bore, so he simply said, “May I present you... the </span>
  <em>
    <span>Indominus Rex</span>
  </em>
  <span>. Our first genetically modified hybrid.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Simon’s face morphs into a disbelieving expression, “How did you get two different kinds of dinosaur’s to…” he smashed his hands together suggestively and Louis wanted to slam his head into the glass, “y’know.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Saving Louis from the explanation, Dr. Henry Wu, walked up behind the investors, a sly smile tugging on the corners of his lips at the chance to brag about his creation, “Oh, Indominus wasn't bred. She was</span>
  <em>
    <span> designed</span>
  </em>
  <span>. She will be fifty feet long when fully grown. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Bigger </span>
  </em>
  <span>than the T. rex.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Louis cleared his throat, chin lifted to continue his pitch, “Every time we've unveiled a new asset, attendance has spiked. Global news coverage. Celebrity visitors. Eyes of the world.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He knew that it was sold by the look in Louise’s eyes, the look of opportunity, of money and profit, “When will she be ready?</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Louis watched the smug smirk on Dr. Wu’s face grow, and he knew it was the look of pride and success, but his gut churned when he said, “She already</span>
  <em>
    <span> is</span>
  </em>
  <span>.”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>It was probably just the headache</span>
  </em>
  <span>, he told himself, </span>
  <em>
    <span>that’s why he didn’t feel great. </span>
  </em>
  <span>His phone rang, sending a sharp pain through his head, but he just smiled at the group and excused himself. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hey, Z,” he marched down the halls, watching pinging to tell him that he should be getting downstairs to the Innovation Centre to try and catch his nephew and niece before they began their day in the park. </span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Lou, you know you’re my best mate and I’m only saying this because I love you dearly, you need a vacation.” </span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“I work on an island in Central America, Zayn,” he muttered, feet tapping down the stairs. </span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Okay, then you need to get laid,” </span>
  </em>
  <span>the accent of his best friend was like a breath of fresh air, </span>
  <em>
    <span>“seriously, when you do manage to come visit me in the flat that we technically share, you look like the type of tightly wound that only has two solutions: relaxing on a beach somewhere or getting fucked within an inch of your life.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m doing perfectly fine, Z, and I am definitely not ‘tightly wound,’” he heard the sound of protest that came over the line, but Louis caught sight of his niece, “Liza, is that you?” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Uncle Louis!”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Louis, please try and take time off, spend time with Liam’s kids, yeah? Also, find some guy to roughen-”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>Coughing, Louis chose to ignore his friend, “Okay, yeah. No. Gotta go, Z, talk to you later.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He hung up the phone before he was subjected to anymore embarrassment and finally cleared the last few steps, letting a smile curl his lips and crinkle the corners of his eyes, “Hi!” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Liza, his niece stumbled into him, wrapping her arms around him and squeezing him. Not expecting it, Louis did his best to reciprocate the hug, stuttering through his words awkwardly, “Wow, um, you’re s-so sweet,” he patted her back, eyes falling on Bear who had his hands stuffed into the pockets of his grey hoodie. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Finally freed from the hug, Louis analyzed his nephew, eyes widening in slight shock, “Bear, wow, you’ve gotten so tall, last time I saw you, you were only like here,” he put his hand mid chest, completely ignoring the fact that Bear was already taller than him, “That must’ve been, what? Three, four years ago?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Seven,” Bear mumbled, british accent sharp with sarcasm, “Seven years, but y’know close.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>His eyes lowered, catching on the blue wristbands and he let himself latch onto that, “I see you got your wristbands!” he pulled an envelope from the back pocket of his grey trousers, “here’s money for food. Eleanor will be keeping an eye out for you.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>His assistant just now was joining the group, straightening up at the sight of Louis, adjusting her blouse. He cleared his throat and turned to Liza who looked exactly like her father when they were disappointed, a puppy dog that was begging, “You’re not coming with us?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I wish that I could,” he kept his voice smooth, like he was playing another pitch, “tomorrow, however, I’m all yours. I can take you to the control room and show you the behind the scenes, that’s cool right?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>His phone started ringing and he looked away guiltily, “I’ll see you at six, yeah?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No, no, you have the-”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Louis cringed at the reminder, words spilling out of his mouth only to settle on, “Okay, um, have fun.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He waved awkwardly, picking up the call and walking away. When he ended the call, he had a fresh cup of coffee in his hand and a neutral expression as he walked into the control room. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Live count?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Twenty-two thousand, two-hundred sixteen.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He shuffled closer to Lowerey and Vivian, eyes scanning over the wall of monitors, “Any incidents?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Louis heard the words, but he could barely comprehend them as his gaze caught on Lowerey’s t-shirt. He narrowed his eyes and pointed at the graphic of the old park, </span>
  <em>
    <span>Jurassic Park</span>
  </em>
  <span>, “Where did you get that?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The tech stumbled over his words, and Louis ignored most of the rambling to tell him, “Didn’t it occur to you maybe that’s in poor taste?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Lowerey flushed and stuttered out another explanation, Louis cut him off with a hand motion, “Okay, just don’t wear it again.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He made his way through another conversation with the two of them, head spinning slightly as he watched the cameras, eyes catching on one in particular. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Clean up your workplace..it’s chaotic,” he pointed to Lowerey’s dinosaur collection and disorganized sticky note collection. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>"I like to think of it as a living system. Just enough stability to keep it from collapsing into anarchy…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Louis rolled his eyes, nudging a trash can over with his foot, and turning to catch his next appointment, the PA buzzing on, “Inbound chopper, Jurassic 1. ETA five minutes.”</span>
</p>
<hr/><p>
  <span>“Louis!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Mr. Masrani!” Louis felt annoyance as his lips ached with the strain of smiling artificially once again, “you’re flying?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>It came out as more of a question than an exclamation, but the park’s owner just shrugged as if it was no big surprise, “I got my license.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Louis was none too pleased to see the other man in the pilot’s area a sickly color of green, hold up two fingers, “Two more.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Well, two more days,” it seems insignificant the way he says it, and Louis felt like he should maybe not be in the back of this helicopter as Masrani turns in his seat, “so, how’s my park doing?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Louis shifted, opening his folders to look at the paperwork that showed the numbers he already had memorized and bouncing around in his brain, “Great. We're up two and a half percent over last year, a bit lower than our initial projections-”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Masrani shifts and shakes his head, “No, no, no, how's it doing? Are the guests having fun? Are the animals enjoying life?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>His face scrunching slightly, Louis adjusted his answer, “Well, guest satisfaction is steady. In the low nineties. We don't have a way to measure the animals' emotional experience.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Sure you do. You can see in their eyes, right?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Louis wants to roll his eyes, but he just allows another smile to curl his lips, “Of course.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Turning back to the controls, he hears the childlike glee in the business man’s voice, “Okay, now show me my new dinosaur…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>As they rose in the air, Louis felt nausea sink into his stomach, the wobbly set of the helicopter making him thoroughly regret getting on this ride. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You look tense, Louis.”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>I wonder why, </span>
  </em>
  <span>Louis thought bitterly, hand gripping for a hold as they flew dangerously close to some trees. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You should spend a day at the beach. Get some sun.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Louis avoided the topic, his words sounding eerily similar to those of Zayn’s, “Uh, right, so marketing thought we could offset some of the costs--”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>His voice was shaky and he scolded himself mentally for losing the professional air that he practically exuded. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Ah, enough about costs! John Hammond entrusted me with his dying wish, and not once did he mention profits. "Spare no expense", he used to say.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Louis closed his eyes, breathing deeply, “I appreciate that, really, but the practicality of that while opening a theme park-”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He felt another wave of nausea hit as the helicopter dipped suddenly, decidingly blocking out the rest of the conversation until they finally landed at Paddock 11. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>The concrete walls with metal framing provided an intimidating, dark demeanor as they approached, Louis glancing worriedly at the flying instructor who was puking into the grass. Masrani was glancing curiously at the crew who was working on extending the walls, and Louis gestured to the construction, “We planned to open in May, but Asset Containment insisted we build the walls up higher. It's bigger than expected.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He was expecting some sort of surprise or annoyance at the delay, but all Louis got was a simple, “It’s a good sign.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>They enter the observation deck, Louis nodding to the supervisor, as he explained to his boss, “We hit a few speed bumps early on. It began to anticipate where the food would come from. One of the handlers nearly lost an arm. The others threatened to quit if I couldn't guarantee their safety.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He shrugged, giving the supervisor a pointed look who exited, leaving them alone to stare out at the dense jungle that seemed practically empty. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“She’s intelligent, then?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Louis tilted his head, “For a dinosaur.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“And that?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Forcing himself to be nonchalant, Louis looked at the cracked glass subtly, “It tried to break the glass.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I like her spirit,” it was chuckled out darkly and Louis wanted to throw up as the leaves rustled and a dark shape moved toward them. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Taking in Masrani’s expression, Louis felt his brow crease, “Think it’ll scare the kids?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“The kids? It’ll give the </span>
  <em>
    <span>parents</span>
  </em>
  <span> nightmares.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Is that... good?” he was almost scared to hear the answer, but his face remained neutral.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Fantastic,” he breathed, staring at the luminous glimpse of white skin through the green canopy, “Can she see us?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“They say it can sense thermal radiation, like snakes.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Masrani searched the habitat, as if he were waiting for something more, “I thought there were two of them.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Louis nodded, “There was a sibling in case it did not survive infancy.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Where is the sibling?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Louis felt his mouth twist, and he was completely aware that he should not be so matter-of-fact about the whole occurrence, “She ate it.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>His boss gestured to the room, “The paddock is quite safe, is it not?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We have the best structural engineers in the world.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Flinching internally at the next words, Louis wanted to just throw himself to the dinosaur, “So did Hammond.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>If there was anything that Louis hated more than unpracticality or disorganization, it was comparing his park to that park. They were built on the same principles, but Jurassic World was safe, secure, and successful. He lets the silence fill the space, the words falling forgotten and useless without a response. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“There's a Navy man here. Part of a research program one of my companies is running. Harry Styles.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Louis was unsuccessful in hiding his scowl, “I know who </span>
  <em>
    <span>he</span>
  </em>
  <span> is.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“His animals often try to escape. They're smart. He has to be smarter.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Refraining from rolling his eyes, Louis settles on smiling without any emotion behind it, “He only </span>
  <em>
    <span>thinks</span>
  </em>
  <span> he’s smarter.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>To his credit, the dark headed man beside him says nothing about the bitter distaste in Louis’ comment, only opts to say, “I want you to bring him in. Let him inspect the paddock. Maybe he sees something we can't.”</span>
</p>
<hr/><p>
  <span>Harry Styles kept his footsteps quiet, eyes following the squealing pig as it darted through the jungle-like terrain beneath him. He saw the leaves rustle and four blurs go after their prey, but as the pig practically flew toward the trap door which was its safety, Harry held up his hand and let his voice project, “Hold!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The four Raptors, his Velociraptors, slid to a halt obediently albeit a bit reluctantly, watching their prey get away, claw tapping impatiently. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>A piece of hair fell out of his bun and he let it, not breaking eye contact with the four predators that were staring up at him and the catwalk he was on curiously, he could tell their attention wouldn’t last long and he pressed down on the clicker in his hand, “Hey! Hey!,” he holds his hand up, “Okay!” He saw Blue shifting, hungry eyes on the trap door, “Eyes on me! Blue? Blue!” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He tilts his head and narrows his eyes, pointing to the raptor with her identifiable blue stripe, out of the corner of his eye, he saw Charlie snapping his jaws, mouthing off, “Watch it. Charlie. Hey! Don't give me that! Shut it.” Delta was shifting out of position, and Harry barked out, “Delta! Lock it up! Good! And we're moving.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Harry walks sideways to the other branch of the catwalk, where a bucket was attached to the rails, he raptors followed, the soft leaves indenting under their feet, “Hold!” he warns. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>They stand below him, obedient and still, watching him, “Very good! See, Charlie, that's what you get!” reaching into the bucket his fingers wrap around the dead rat, throwing it to Charlie who happily snatches it from the air, “Echo, there you go! Delta!” the two raptors munched happily on the bait, he grabbed another, “Blue? This one's for you.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Praying that they’ll listen to him for a few more minutes, “Hold! Eyes up!” Harry feels pride race through him, adrenaline short behind it, “Go!” he sweeps his hand and the Raptors are gone. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Grinning, Harry feels some of the tension leave his muscles, he turns to see Niall walking toward him with laughter in his eyes, “You finally did it, ya cunt!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He shakes his best friend’s hand only to be pulled into a brief hug by the Irishman, who patted at his back before pulling back and giving Harry another grin. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Styles. I was starting to think I hired the wrong guys, but, damn, you got them eating out of your palm.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Niall and Harry shared an annoyed look, but Harry shrugged and turned to Jeff Azoff, “You came on a good day. It's not usually a happy ending.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Jeff looks up at Harry, squinting in the sunlight, “Is that why you’re not sending in your reports?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Harry shifted his chin down, mouth tilting nonchalantly, “We’ve been busy.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Jeff snorted, “Not too busy to cash your paychecks.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What do you need, buddy?” Harry forced the word out as they walked across the catwalk, eyes shifting over the habitat below them. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“A field test. Hey. I've just seen they can respond to commands. We need to take the research and get it on its feet.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Niall snorted and Harry refrained from rolling his eyes, “These are wild animals, Azoff. Trust me, you don’t want them in the field.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The older man didn’t give up, pressing with a slimy smile, hands gesturing, “I just saw a bond. A real bond. Between man and beast.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Tugging at the hair tie, Harry let his hair loose, hands tugging through the wild curls as he turned to leave the conversation, but Jeff stepped in front of him and Harry saw his expression darken in the reflection of his boss’ eyes, “You’re in my way.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Come on. We’re the same. We’re dogs of war,” He pushed a finger into Harry’s chest, ignoring the looks he was receiving from Niall and Harry, “We know that the military needs to reduce casualties. Some people think that robots are the future. Look, nature gave us the most effective killing machines 75 million years ago. And now we know they can take orders.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Niall stands next to Harry, pushing in between Jeff and him and looking out over the rails, eyes shifting to his friend incredulously, “We finally make progress and that's the first thing he says? Make a </span>
  <em>
    <span>weapon</span>
  </em>
  <span>?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Jeff looks exasperated, grasping at anything there might be to draw them in, “Come on, gents. It's grown-up time. Drones can't search tunnels and caves. And they're hackable. The minute a real war breaks out, all that fancy tech is gonna go dark.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Harry snorts, standing next to Niall, “But that tech’s </span>
  <em>
    <span>not</span>
  </em>
  <span> gonna eat them if they forget to feed it.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Jeff gestures out to the habitat where Blue and Charlie are in sight, Echo and Delta probably not far away, “Look at these creatures. They've got millions of years of instinct in their cells, instinct that we can program. Their loyalty cannot be bought. These guys are gonna run straight into the enemy's teeth and eat them, belt buckle and all.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Harry feels disgust curl in his belly, eyes darting out over the raptors he had practically raised, he heard Niall’s mocking accent, “Then what if they decide they wanna be in control? What’s gonna stop them from making you their next target?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Jeff shrugs like he’s got everything figured out, like he knows exactly how to handle Velociraptors, “Well, then we remind them who is. We terminate the rogues. Promote only loyal bloodlines.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Niall lets out a laugh, and gives Harry a look that screams, </span>
  <em>
    <span>good luck, mate,</span>
  </em>
  <span> and walks away shaking his head. Harry laughs softly, and he hears Jeff halt his glory speech to look at him, “What? What’s so funny?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I don’t know,” Harry huffs, his not-so-amused smile twitching in the corners of his lips, “You come here and you don't learn anything about these animals except what you want to know. You made them, and now you </span>
  <em>
    <span>think</span>
  </em>
  <span> you own them.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Jeff laughed behind him, following him as Harry walked down the steps, “Oh, but we </span>
  <em>
    <span>do</span>
  </em>
  <span> own them. Extinct animals have no rights.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Opening the gate and letting it shut, Harry walked into the secondary room, only separated from the cage by thick metal bars, “They’re not extinct anymore, Azoff.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Harry was hoping that keeping Jeff outside the bars would end the conversation, but stubborn as ever, he pushed on, arms hanging through the horizontal cutouts, “Exactly. We're sitting on a goldmine and Masrani is using it to stock a petting zoo.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“He just wants to teach people some humility. He doesn't make weapons.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Jeff’s laugh was mocking, “You think that the eighth richest man in the world is only into oil, telecom, and family fun parks? He's so diversified, he doesn't even know what he owns.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“How long has InGen been practicing this pitch?” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Since the day we hired you out of the Navy,” Harry didn’t want to hear the rest, but Jeff just kept on talking, “You knew the end game. These animals can replace thousands of boots on the ground. How many lives would that save? War is part of nature. Look around, Harry. Every living thing in this jungle is trying to murder the other. Mother Nature's way of testing her creations. Refining the pecking order. War is a struggle. Struggle breeds greatness. Without that, we end up with places like this, charge seven bucks a soda.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Harry rolls his eyes, turning back from checking the equipment, “Do you even hear yourself when you talk?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Not amused by the sarcasm, Jeff told him, “This is happening. With or without you boys. Progress </span>
  <em>
    <span>always</span>
  </em>
  <span> wins.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Eyes falling to the ground minutely, Harry squares his shoulders, “Maybe progress should lose for once.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Squealing catches his attention, a new worker calls out, “Pig loose! Pig loose!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>When he sees the pig get snagged by Echo, Harry watches in horror as the worker is pulled over the rails and into the cage, landing with a thump. He’s moving before he can even think about what he’s doing, hand slamming on the button to the gate of the cage as he watches Delta, Charlie, and Blue close in on the down newbie. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He hears Niall yell after him, “Harry, no!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Harry’s already inside, running in front of the man and holding out his hand. He hears the gate groan to a stop, but doesn’t dare look back, eyes glancing up at the catwalk where two men are aiming guns, “Oh no, no, hold your fire!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He steps closer, hearing the scramble of leaves as the worker struggled to get further and further away from the approaching danger, “Do not fire! Put 12 amps into those animals and they never trust me again.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Harry raises his hand, locking eyes with Blue as he states firmly, eyes hard, “Blue, stand down. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Stand down</span>
  </em>
  <span>.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The Raptor snapped at him, and he wanted to flinch, but he kept his voice stern, hand steady, “Hey, hey! What did I just say?” He sees movement from his right, “Delta, I see you. Back up.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Delta snarls at him but doesn’t come any closer, “Okay, good. Good. Charlie? Stay right there. Good.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He keeps his eyes on the animals in front of him, but speaks to Niall, “Close the gate.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The idea is insane and sounds even worse when you don’t know all the details and Niall doesn’t have a hard time reminding him, “Are you crazy!?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Trust me, close the gate.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He hears another voice, “You heard him, close the gate!!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Niall dodged and hit the button, the screech of the gate filling his ears as he backed up slowly before whipping around and rolling into safety. The gate hit the ground with a thud and then the bang of four raptors rang in Harry’s ears as they slammed into the metal bars, snarling.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He flinched, sweat pouring down the back of his neck as Niall helped him up, “I’m okay, Nialler.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Abruptly aware of the extra presence, Harry looked down at the worker who had barely scraped by alive, “You’re the new guy?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He nodded, chin still wavering with terror in his eyes, “Yeah.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Taking his hair tie, he shoves his curls into a messy bun, allowing the cool breeze to blow against his neck. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You ever wonder why there was a job opening?” He sees the impact of his world, the man’s throat bobbing with terror, “ Hey. Don't ever turn your back to the cage.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Catching eyes with Jeff, who has a smug look on his face before finally walking away, Harry shakes his head and makes his way out of the gate, the sounds of a growling raptor fading into the background.</span>
</p>
<hr/><p>
  <span>Louis ignores the nerves settling in his stomach as he drives through the jungle, the dirt road smooth from travel. His phone rings and he groans when he realizes the contact reads </span>
  <em>
    <span>Liam.</span>
  </em>
  <span> Knowing that ignoring his brother’s call yesterday was one thing, Louis was completely aware that he couldn’t ignore it this time. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hey, Liam,” his voice just screams innocent little brother, but he knows that Liam doesn’t buy it when his voice fills the speaker, disapprovingly. </span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Louis, glad you could answer my call,”</span>
  </em>
  <span> Louis winced slightly, </span>
  <em>
    <span>“how’s everything going?”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>Head still throbbing, Louis shifts his hands on the steering wheel nervously, “Oh, everything’s great. Liza and Bear are having fun, did you notice how tall Bear has gotten?”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Oh geez,</span>
  </em>
  <span> Louis bit his lip, </span>
  <em>
    <span>he was rambling, </span>
  </em>
  <span>his biggest tell for when he was hiding something. </span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Really?” </span>
  </em>
  <span>Liam’s accent was bitingly sarcastic, </span>
  <em>
    <span>“Because I just got off the phone with Bear, and he had the funniest thing to tell me. You’re not even with them, Lou?”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>The accusation in his words made guilt pool in Louis’ mouth, ready to pour out with whatever excuse he could come up with, “Yeah, look. Today turned out to be a really bad day for me. They're in great hands. They're with my assistant,” </span>
  <em>
    <span>oh shit, Louis, what’s her name, </span>
  </em>
  <span>he came short on his memory, stuttering out, “She's British, you know we Brits invented nannies.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Louis laughed nervously, turning down another road, as Liam sighed heavily into the phone, “</span>
  <em>
    <span>Louis, you know this was supposed to be a family week. Is work that important that you can’t spend at least the weekend with your niece and nephew who you haven’t seen in seven years.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>Guilt stabbed at his gut and Louis knew that his older brother was giving him that look through the phone, big brown eyes glistening sadly until you did whatever they wanted, “Okay, I'm sorry. Tomorrow, I'm gonna spend the entire day with them. I'm going to take off work, and I will not leave their side. I promise.”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Well, a promise tomorrow is worth a lot-”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh don’t even try and finish that line, Li. Quoting mum, really?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Liam laughed into the phone, </span>
  <em>
    <span>“My God. I am using Mom's lines. I'm sorry, but you know,I have to tell you, they work. You'll see when you have kids.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah, ‘if.’”</span>
</p><p><em><span>“‘When.’” </span></em><span>Liam corrected,</span> <span>“</span><em><span>It's worth it. Even if you do have to adopt, Louis, don’t use your sexuality as an excuse-”</span></em></p><p>
  <span>Louis flushed, cutting off Liam, “Bye, Mom,” hearing the soft, farewell he got in return before hanging up and groaning into the steering wheel as he finally pulled up to his destination. The nerves that had gone forgotten during his phone call returned as he caught sight of the man he was looking for. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Harry Styles looked exactly like Louis remembered, broad and muscular, his t-shirt stretching thinly over his biceps, long hair sweeping down to cover part of his face. He turned at the sound of Louis’ car, green eyes narrowing as he watched Louis step out of the car, hand sweeping to adjust his hair, as he said, “What do they want now?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Louis wasn’t sure if it was meant for him to hear, but he just bypassed the questions, stuffing his hands in his pockets as he stepped closer, “Mr. Styles.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He tried not to stare as Harry straightened in his seat, eyes fixing on Louis, arm propping on the motorcycle he had been evidently working on before Louis’ arrival. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I need you to come take a look at something.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Cheeks feeling warm as Harry’s eyes trailed up and down his figure, Louis fought not to fix his attire out of self conscious habit, “Why are you calling me Mr. Styles?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Harry,” he corrected a little too quickly, eyes darting around, trying to land anywhere but on Harry’s, “If you’re not too busy?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Louis glanced pointedly at the beer in Harry’s hands and the rusty motorcycle, annoyance weighing his teeth to sink into his bottom lip when the Raptor trainer smirked lightly, head tilting back to take a swig of beer, “I’m pretty busy.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Instead of allowing his annoyance to show, because quite honestly he did not want to give Harry the satisfaction, he continued, “We have an attraction.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Harry snorted, hands flexing on his thighs as he stood up to his full height, already towering over Louis despite the distance between them, “That’s not what you said last time I saw you.” Heat threatened to crawl up Louis’ neck but he swallowed and forced himself to roll his eyes, “The dinosaurs, Mr. Styles.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The chuckle he got in return clouded his mind and he practically locked his knees to stay standing, “Harry,” he was reminded. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Louis ignored it, his reply steely and professional because that’s who he was, a professional, “A new species we made.” The look he got in return was incredulous as he fought not to stare at Harry’s hands, which were really nice hands when Louis thought about it, as he wiped the oil off them with a cloth. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>A fly buzzed around his head, and he tried to shoo it away with his hand, but then Harry was in front of him, fist closing around the fly, the buzzing ceased. Louis’ throat went dry at the sight of Harry’s bicep flexing. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You just went and made a new dinosaur?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Louis nodded, responding to the incredulous tone with his only weapon: sarcasm, “Yeah, it's uh kinda what we do here,” he saw amusement flash in Harry’s eyes, “The exhibit opens to the public in three weeks. Mr. Masrani wanted me to consult with you.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>For the first time since he had arrived on Harry’s small chunk of property, their eyes locked and Louis felt like he was drowning in a sea of emeralds while being lost in a dark green forest, but he was snapped out of it when Harry smirked smugly, thumbing over his lip as Louis watched the motion, “You want to </span>
  <em>
    <span>consult</span>
  </em>
  <span> here, or in my bungalow.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The words were dripping with implication and Louis subconsciously rubbed at his neck as if he could still feel the hot, wet press of lips against the sensitive skin, the marks that he was left with the next day and shook his head minutely, snapping back into reality with a sneer as Harry laughed smugly, “It’s not funny,” he hissed, before forcing his face back to neutrality, “Look, Mr. Masrani would like you to evaluate the paddock for vulnerabilities.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Harry stopped laughing, eyes more serious as his nose scrunched curiously, “Why me?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I believe, he believes that since you are able to control the raptors…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The look of exasperation filled Harry’s expression and Louis shut his mouth abruptly, “See, it's all about control with you. I don't control the raptors, it's a relationship. It's based on </span>
  <em>
    <span>mutual respect</span>
  </em>
  <span>. That's why you and I never had a second date.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Louis gasped, protest filling his limbs as he pointed at Harry’s back, “I never wanted a second date, dickhead!” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Harry was back by his motorcycle now, eyebrows raised at him, “You’re the one who printed out an itinerary for a night out! Who does that by the way?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh, wow, sorry for being organized and presentable, you wore pants with rat blood on them</span>
  <em>
    <span>, </span>
  </em>
  <span>may I remind you,” he retaliated, arms crossing over his chest defensively. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You're the one who made an itinerary that started ten minutes after I finish working with dinosaurs that eat rats! Also, what kind of diet doesn’t let you drink tequila,” Harry huffed, turning back to look at Louis. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“All of them, actually,” Louis’ lips parted, ready to continue the argument, but he just shook his head, “it doesn’t even matter, it doesn’t affect me or the fact that we need to be focusing on the asset.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Harry glared at Louis, “The "asset"? Look I get it. You're in charge out here, you gotta make a lot of tough decisions, it's probably easier to pretend these animals are just numbers on a spreadsheet,” Louis conveniently made sure to block the comment about the fact he did have a spreadsheet because it would not do anything to help him, “but they are not. They are </span>
  <em>
    <span>alive</span>
  </em>
  <span>.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Scoffing, Louis shook his head as Harry walked back over to him, “Oh, I am fully aware they're alive.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You might have made them in a test tube, but they don't know that. They're thinking: I gotta eat. I gotta hunt. I gotta,” green eyes glistened with immaturity as Harry pumped his fist back and forth suggestively, “I know you can relate to at least the last one,” another smirk shaped dark lips and Louis blushed hotly, suddenly too close the bungalow and implication of remembering the meaning behind Harry’s words. He let his dress shoes tap down the wooden steps, stopping on the last one and standing far closer to Harry than he should. </span>
</p><p>
  <span> “I’ll be in the car,” the smell of Harry, vanilla and tobacco, just as intoxicating as he remembered filled his senses and he fought to force a snarky grin on his lips as he sniffed, “you may want to change your shirt. It’s sensitive to smells,” he walked away, shoulder barely brushing against Harry’s chest and then he was in the car and he could breathe, realizing that sometime in that painful conversation, his headache had finally ebbed away and Louis really hoped it wasn’t because of what he thought it might be.</span>
</p>
<hr/><p>
  <span>Paddock 11 loomed over them as Louis led Harry toward the staircase to the observatory deck, the need to release some of the information in his mind leading him to say, “We've been pre-booking tickets for months. The park needs a new attraction every few years in order to reinvigorate the public's interest. Kinda like the space program,” he shrugged, “Corporate felt genetic modification would up the ‘wow’ factor.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Harry didn’t seem amused, “They’re dinosaurs, seems ‘wow’ enough.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Rolling his eyes, Louis allowed his lips to twitch into a smirk, “Not according to our focus groups. The </span>
  <em>
    <span>Indominus rex</span>
  </em>
  <span> makes us relevant again.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Harry laughs and Louis stops halfway up the stairs to look back and see the look of ridicule on Harry’s face, “The </span>
  <em>
    <span>Indominus Rex,”</span>
  </em>
  <span> he snorts out. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We needed something scary and easy to pronounce,” Louis pushed his hand through his fringe, glaring at the man, “You should hear a four year old try to say </span>
  <em>
    <span>‘Archaeornithomimus</span>
  </em>
  <span>.’”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Seemingly upset by Louis’ pronunciation of something Louis was most positive, the British Navy man below him couldn’t say, Harry mumbled out, “You should hear you try to say it..” with a frown before following Louis up the steps and through the door. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>The supervisor from earlier was sitting at a table in the room, a bag of chips and a burger sitting in front of him as he nodded to Louis and the stranger. Louis went to the touch screen, watching Harry approach the glass from the corner of his eye. Louis waited for the familiar flash of white skin and the scary glow of an orange eye, but nothing came. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What’s this thing made of?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“The base genome is a T. rex, the rest is,” Louis folded his hands in annoyance because this was something he didn’t know, “</span>
  <em>
    <span>classified</span>
  </em>
  <span>.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Harry looked at him, eyebrows pinching together, “You made a new dinosaur but you don't even know what 'it’ is?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Louis felt another wave of annoyance wash over him and he snarked out dismissively, “The lab delivers us new assets and we show them to the public,” he turns to Nick, the supervisor, “Can we lower a steer, please?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Wiping his hands, Nick looks upset at the interruption but says, “Sure thing, boss,” and hits a button. They watch as the crane moves a carcass to rest in the treeline of the paddock. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Harry seems unperturbed by Louis’ avoidance, “How long has it been in there?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Louis’ nose scrunched in confusion but he answered anyway, “All its life.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Pointing to the large walls, “She’s never seen anything outside these walls?” Harry seems concerned by the fact, but Louis just taps the glass impatiently, “We can’t exactly walk it, Harold.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Harry stares at the crane that has the meat hooked to it, the chain moving slightly in the breeze, “And you feed it with </span>
  <em>
    <span>that</span>
  </em>
  <span>?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Still not understanding what Harry’s issue is, he crosses his arm and faces the trainer, “Is there a problem?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Animals raised in isolation aren’t usually the most functional,” and Louis has to snort at that, eyebrow quirking. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Your raptors were raised in captivity.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah, with siblings,” Harry emphasized, “they learned social skills.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Louis decided that telling Harry about the asset’s sibling probably wouldn't disprove Harry’s point, but he doesn’t have to respond because Harry continues, “And I imprint on them when they're born. There's trust. The only positive relationship this animal has is with that crane,” he points at it sharply, “At least she knows that means food.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Louis feels like he should match Harry’s concern, but he can’t help take on a patronizing tone, “So she needs a friend? Should we schedule play dates? That sort of thing?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>What he wasn’t expecting to receive in return was a dark chuckle that sent shivers down his spine and five words, “Probably not a good idea.” Louis decides looking anywhere but Harry is the best plan and he feels confusion press down heavily on his brow as he looks out the glass, “</span>
  <em>
    <span>Where is it?</span>
  </em>
  <span>”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Louis feels panic rise in him, he hears the sarcasm in Harry’s words as he asks, “What, is it in the basement? Is there a downstairs? Maybe it's in the rec room.” Louis just shakes his head, nausea rising in his throat as he begins a thermal scan, “It was just here. We were </span>
  <em>
    <span>just</span>
  </em>
  <span> here.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The red signals, the message popping up on the large monitor as the thermal scan came back, </span>
  <em>
    <span>NO THERMAL SIGNATURES DETECTED. </span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>He hears Harry’s soft curse as he strides to the opposite side of the observation deck, eyes scanning out the window, and Nick sat up straighter, disbelief painted on his face, “That doesn't make any sense. These doors haven't been opened in weeks.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Louis tries to find comfort in the logic of that, there was no way it could have escaped, it was impos- </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Were those claw marks always there?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>His throat gets impossibly tighter as he walks up behind Harry to look at the deep indentations that lead all the way up the wall, “You think it…?” It hits him like a brick was just dropped on his head and Louis couldn't keep his hands from trembling as he choked out, “</span>
  <em>
    <span>Oh, God.</span>
  </em>
  <span>”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>For the first time since he first began working on Jurassic World, Louis felt afraid of a dinosaur. Terror rushed through him as he stumbled backwards toward the door, “She has an implant in her back! I can track it from the control room!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Running out of the room, Louis almost falls down the stairs to get to his car, phone already in hand as he dials the emergency number. “We have an asset out of containment!” his voice shook slightly as he barked out the orders, “Put ACU on alert! This is not a drill!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He hangs up the call and dials the control room, praying for them to hurry up, </span>
  <em>
    <span>“Yeah, hello?”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>Louis’ words are rushed, as he feels an ounce of relief, “Lowerey, get me coordinates on the <em>Indominus</em>.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Lowerey sounds confused, </span>
  <em>
    <span>“Okay, yeah….let me do...uh, workin’ on it right now.”</span>
  </em>
</p>
<hr/><p>
  <span>Harry’s instincts are buzzing as he walks into the cage, eyes scanning the canopy above him, the supervisor that had never been introduced walking behind him anxiously. They walk toward the wall with the scratches where a technician is studying them, white hat crooked on his head. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Pressing his palm to drift over the groove in the concrete, Harry feels his mouth turn down, eyes drifting up to study the similar marks running up the wall. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“That wall’s forty feet high,” The supervisor sounded skeptical, drawing the other two mans gazes, “You really think she could've climbed out?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Harry feels something bad grasp at his ribs, climbing up to stab at his heart, “Depends,” he trailed off, eyes darting. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“On what?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What kind of dinosaur they cooked up in that lab,” the implication had Harry pressing his hands back against the wall, feeling to make sure they were in fact real and this wasn’t some sort of nightmare. </span>
</p>
<hr/><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Wait, what the? It’s in the cage…”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>Louis shook his head despite the fact that it wasn’t visible over the phone, “No, that’s impossible,” his throat constricted, “I was </span>
  <em>
    <span>just </span>
  </em>
  <span>there.”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Louis, I'm telling you, she's in the cage…” </span>
  </em>
  <span>Louis heard shuffling on the other side, a sharp inhale that screamed fear, </span>
  <em>
    <span>“What? Wait a second, there are people in there..”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>His foot slammed against the brake, his heart hammering, practically screaming into the phone as he realizes, “Get them out of there! NOW!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He hears Vivian call into Paddock 11, but as he starts driving, Louis feels the claws of fear shredding his insides, mind racing as he hangs up, unable to stomach hearing what comes next. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He closed his eyes, </span>
  <em>
    <span>Goodbye, Harry.</span>
  </em>
</p>
<hr/><p>
  <span>Harry had been on alert since he walked into the home of the most dangerous creature alive, but at the time it had been for no reason because the animal wasn’t home. So when the buzz of the supervisor’s walkie talkie came on in the sound of broken-up, frantic sentences, Harry felt his muscles tense, a sense of doom settling over him. </span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“...ddock...Paddock 11….do yo...copy?”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah,” The supervisor tilted his head to talk into the speaker on his shoulder, “what’s the problem?”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“It’s in the cage! It’s in there with you!”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>It takes Harry two seconds to process the words, shouting, “Go!” running to the small door where they had entered from, the technician right beside him. The trees rustled and Harry felt terror chill his bones as he stared at the scariest beast he had ever seen. No time to stare at the white skin and wicked claws, Harry turned sharply running back toward Nick who was pressing his hand against the recognition software and opening the large gate. Harry heard the scream of the technician, the swoop of air as the man was clawed off the ground and lifted to his death. He could’ve sworn he heard the wet slap of blood wetting the leaves but he didn’t think about it, legs burning as he sprinted for the exit, completely aware that the opening was getting slower as the gate began to close. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Deja vu rolled over him as he barely squeezed through the gate, sliding and tumbling to relative safety under one of the jeeps. The sound of the gate being crunched and broken, the resounding boom of heavy footsteps that followed set Harry on edge as he hardly dared to breathe. He could see the supervisor leaning against the front of a white truck, hands shaking as his face glistened with tears. His hands pressed into the rough rock of the coarse gravel, palms aching as he watched the body of the beast go out of sight, tail swishing by the end of the white truck. Harry flinched back when the truck was lifted up and thrown back down into a twisted heap of broken glass and metal, his eyes found the terrified ones of the supervisor and watched as jaws snapped around him, death too quick for him to even scream. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Harry’s mind raced, heart hammering as he reached behind him, drawing his knife and cutting through the fuel line, letting the gasoline pour over him. He made sure that his shirt was soaked in it before clamping his arms to his sides, acutely aware of the presence of the Indominus Rex lurking next to the Jeep. The jaws, teeth yellow and stained red with blood and pieces of ragged skin, were visible as it leant down, presumably looking for him. A hot puff of air hit his arm and he fought to keep his mouth shut, holding his breath as he turned away, squeezing his eyes shut. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Even when he heard the thump of the footsteps fade as it walked away, Harry barely allowed himself an exhale, heart pounding at his ribs, trying to break free. He shivers, the gasoline a cool reminder against his skin, as he lets his head thump back, a shaky breath of relief echoing from his lips.</span>
</p>
<hr/><p>
  <span>“Everyone remain calm,” Louis tried to imitate the authority he used everyday when walking into the control room, but he could feel the cold tremor of his hands inside his pockets, “The implant will shock it if it gets too close to a perimeter fence.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Lowerey looked at the monitor, the red line of its path chartered by its implant, “Okay,” he sounded nervous, doubtful, “it’s moving really fast.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Vivian was already picking up the phone, “This is control, put out a park-wide alert-”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Masrani’s hand landed heavy on Louis’ shoulder as he leaned and hissed out an order to Vivian, “Hang up the phone. Please!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Sorry, I'm getting new information. Everything is fine,” she sighed into the phone, hands playing with the sleeves of her sweater. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Louis winced when Masrani calmed with, “Let Asset Containment capture it quietly. The very existence of this park is predicated on our ability to handle incidents like this. It was an eventuality, okay?” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Lowerey shook his head, mouth pinched in disgust, “You should put that in the brochure. Eventually, one of these things will eat somebody.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Knowing the consequences of anything other than what Masrani was suggesting would lead to everything Louis had built and supervised crumbling to disaster around him, he sighed, “That paddock is four miles from the closest attraction. ACU can handle this, no one else is gonna get-”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Eaten?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Louis didn’t know how to answer, so he let the silence do that job. </span>
</p>
<hr/><p>
  <span>Niall had come to work with the raptors out of curiosity, an instinct that had always gotten him in trouble growing up. He had no expectations of making friends in the dangerous path, but he had been pleasantly surprised when had been met with a British Navy man with wild curls and a dimpled smile. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Harry and him got along great and even shared a few laughs over close calls with snapping jaws and razor claws. They also shared a certain dislike for their supervisor, Jeff Azoff. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Checking up on them like he did every afternoon, Niall pressed his hand into the skin of Echo’s jaw, an orange eyes blinking curiously at him from the metal muzzle that allowed them to study without the risk of death. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“How fast can they run?”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Speak of the devil and it shall appear, </span>
  </em>
  <span>Niall rolled his eyes internally, but the baby blues flitted up to glance at the man walking through the gate and into the space. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Forty. Fifty when they’re hungry.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He stood, hands leaving the raptor to look suspiciously at Jeff as he got closer to Echo, eyes gleaming with darkness, “Ooh! You ever open them up, see what they can do?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Niall wasn’t amused, “No,” his accent flat.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Jeff let his hand wander too close and Echo snapped, her jaws moving minutely but enough for the man to jerk back with a curse, “Shit! That got me. It got me,” he repeated thickly. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Letting out a laugh, Niall shifted his words to a mocking lilt, “What do you think? Want to take one home?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hey, don't joke. When I was your age, I rescued a wolf pup. It was, like, two months old. It could barely walk. It used to sleep by my bed. Watch over me. My wife, she came at me with a steak knife. It took a chunk out of her arm.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The smile on his face made Niall seriously hope that the approval for his ‘field test’ wouldn’t come, not for their raptors. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Did you put it down?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No, no. We had an unshakeable bond, you know? Just like you and…” he gestured to the other raptor that Niall had just begun to look at, “What's his name?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Delta,” Niall frowned, “And she’s a girl.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Can I….”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He trails off and Niall motions for him to go for it, knowing how they react to anyone who isn’t Harry or him. Just as he suspected her to,  Delta snarls at the foreign hands and Niall immediately goes to soothe her, the impressed whisper goes ignored as his Walkie Talkie beeped, </span>
  <em>
    <span>“Code 19!”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>Niall feels the blood drain from his face, “That’s the new one!” he shouts out to the other workers, “They said we lost two guys!” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Jeff stopped him when he went to leave, “What’s Code 19?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Asset out of containment. These people, they never learn,” he shoves past, heart thumping wildly, not hearing Jeff’s whispered words. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“....we might have an opportunity here.”</span>
</p>
<hr/><p>
  <span>Harry felt anger fuel his steps as he pushed past the security guard that tried to stop him, “I need to see a badge, sir. I need to see a badge.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He ignored the hands that grabbed at his arms, “What the fuck happened out there?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>His voice shook with barely restrained emotion, and he watched as Louis turned around to look at him. He was scared, Harry could tell that much, but he could also see the stubbornness that was the tightness in Louis’ jaw. “Sir.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“There are thermal cameras all over that paddock. She did not just disappear!” Harry’s jaw ticked angrily as blue eyes met his. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Louis sighed, eyes flitting away from the contact, “It must have been some kind of a technical malfunction.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The avoidance, the blatant ignorance that Louis knew better than to adopt, made Harry’s voice rise as his anger boiled over, “Were you not watching? She marked up that wall as distraction. She wanted us to think she escaped!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hold on. We are talking about an animal here.” There was Louis’ insistent refusal to believe that the dinosaurs were nothing more than flesh and blood bags with no emotion and no intelligence. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Harry walked closer, his fist clenching by his side, “A highly intelligent animal.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>A girl with blonde hair interrupted, stealing Louis’ focus back to the monitor, “400 metres to the beacon.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Harry’s attention flits to the screen displaying ACU, his jaw went slack, disbelief overtaking anger, “You're going after her with non-lethals…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The dark haired man that Harry knew had to be Masrani gestured exasperatedly, “We have $26 million invested in that asset. We can't just kill it!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Those men are gonna die,” his voice was low and he saw Louis’ throat bob slowly, eyes wide, but he remained silent. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“300 meters to the beacon.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Harry snarled, directing his words to Louis, “You need to call this mission off right now.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The blonde whispered out, her voice shaking, “They're right on top of it.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>It was too late, Harry was almost sure, but he let command bleed into his voice in one last effort, “Call it off right now, Louis.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You are not in control here!” Blue eyes flashed at him dangerously, stubborn and hard. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Harry felt his teeth grind together, jaw clenched as he forced himself to watch the screen. The camera was good quality, depicting the stream as the map indicated that they were right there with it. He heard the slosh of water as one of them, presumably the commander, trudged through the water, lifting up a chunk of white skin with a blinking pill of light. </span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Blood's not clotted yet. It's close,” </span>
  </em>
  <span>the voice was smooth, clear. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What is that?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Harry felt the horror creep up his limbs, “That's her tracking implant. She clawed it out.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Louis’ head snapped up, “How would it know to do that?” shock coloured his voice. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“She remembered where they put it in,” a new kind of fear filled him when the realization of just how smart this animal was hit him. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Harry locks eyes with Louis and this time neither of them look away, a certain understanding of something passing between them unsaid, he almost thinks that Louis will retract the team when he hears the same voice scream, </span>
  <em>
    <span>“It can camouflage!” </span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>They all watch as the pulses of the team slowly fade into red lines, the life ripped out of them, Harry’s voice was hoarse, “Evacuate the Island.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Louis’ head tilted, eyes full of knowledge, fear, guilt, but he only shuttered out, “We’d never reopen.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Inhaling sharply, Harry pointed a finger at him, “You made a genetic hybrid, raised it in captivity. She is seeing all of this for the first time. She does not even know what she is. She will kill everything that moves.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Louis doesn’t respond, but Masrani seems fascinated, “Do you think the animal is contemplating its own existence?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I think,” Harry leant into the words, “she is learning where she fits in the food chain, and I'm not sure you want her to figure that out,” she gestures to the number of red lines, the casualties already suffered. “Now, Asset Containment can use live ammunition in an emergency situation. You have an M134 in your armory. Put it on a chopper and smoke this thing!” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>It was the only option, the best one, and Harry could see that people were agreeing with him, but they weren’t in charge, “We have families here. I'm not gonna turn this place into some kind of a war zone!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Louis’ words were emotional, practical, but were also disregarding the bloodthirsty hybrid dinosaur that would love to eat those families, “You already have!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Mr. Styles,” Louis was tense, “if you're not gonna help, there's no reason for you to be in here.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Cursing, Harry sent his hand out, sweeping toy dinosaurs from where they were situated on a desk, they cluttered to the ground as he walked toward the door, stopping to lean in close to Masrani, “I would have a word with your people in the lab. That thing out there, that's no dinosaur.”</span>
</p>
<hr/><p>
  <span>After Harry leaves, Louis expects his frustration, the tenseness in his muscles to fade, but instead he just feels more fear shake his nerves, “Okay. I'm going to close everything north of "the resort. This is a Phase One, real world. Bring everyone in.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Vivian relays the order, and Louis suddenly realizes that Liza and Bear are out there somewhere, he steps away, calling Eleanor, “I need you to bring Liza and Bear back to the resort as soon as possible.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Rushed mumbling fills the other side and Louis’ overwhelmed, “Slow down, I can't hear you.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“They’ve run off, I can’t find them.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Louis feels a different kind of terror settle, tightening around his lungs until he couldn’t breathe. He hung up, fingers fumbling to press on Bear’s contact, gasping in relief when the line connected, </span>
  <em>
    <span>“Hey, Louis.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh thank god, Liza’s with you?”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Yeah, it’s getting hard to hear you, we’re in that hamster ball thing.</span>
  </em>
  <span>”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Bear, I need you to listen to me very carefully-”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Louis?”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>His heart hit his ribs painfully, “Bear-” the line went dead and Louis felt urgency send him over to Lowerey and Vivian. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Are there any Gyrospheres left in the valley?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Lowerey shook his head, “No, they're all accounted for. It's my job,” he swiped across the screen, paling when a red blip appeared on the graphic, “What? There's one in the field.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>That was them, “Send a team of rangers, bring them in.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Vivian made the call, “Security, we need a search and rescue in the Valley.”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“We've got our hands full out here.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>Louis’ anger pushed him to grab the phone, snarling lowly, “No, there are two guests missing! You need to make this your top priority!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He heard Lowerey mutter softly, “Just do it man.”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“There's a lot of guests missing. We're doing the best we can.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>Slamming the phone back down, Louis pushed his hands through his hair frustrated, “Fine, I'll do it myself!” His eyes catch a glimpse of wild curls and aggressive stance, Harry’s voice mixed with all of the other sound feeds,</span>
  <em>
    <span> “Do you think I'm the one you need to be worried about right now? Back off!”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>He hurried down to the lobby, pushing his way carelessly through a projection, nearly wilting with relief when he heard, “Louis!” rushing to grip at Harry’s biceps, eyes wild. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I need you,” he felt close to tears as he saw his words register in Harry’s eyes, the green darkening with confusion. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Okay…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“My niece and nephew, they’re in the valley. I need to find them. You have to help me. Please, if anything happens to them...” The tightness in his throat became too much and he cut off abruptly, eyes closing. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Harry guides him away from the curious eyes of the crowd, rubbing soothingly at Louis’ shoulders, “How old?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“The boy, he’s older, um about two inches taller than me, high school age, uh, then the girl is younger, um by a few years.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Harry looks more confused, “You don’t know how old they are?”</span>
</p>
<hr/><p>
  <span>Louis is fidgeting anxiously next to him as Bear’s voicemail comes on again, too consumed to notice that they're slowing down. Harry gives him a strict look, “Stay in the car.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Then the door of the G-Wagon is open and Harry is walking away, hoping that Louis will listen to him for once. He falls to his knees next to the fatally injured </span>
  <em>
    <span>Apatosaurus, </span>
  </em>
  <span>hand falling to comfort the dying animal, “Hey, hey. I know, I know. It's all right. All right, girl.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He hears another door open but doesn’t look up until Louis is stumbling to his knees, eyes the colour of a frozen lake, sad and empty, looking at the dinosaur. He reaches out almost hesitantly, but jerks back, fingers shaking when she lets out a pained bellow, a large tear welling up in her eye. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Their eyes meet, as Harry whispers softly to the dinosaur, “Okay, okay. You're okay.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>It gives Louis enough comfort to press a gentle palm onto the slightly rough skin, tears welling up in his eyes, one falling down his cheek as the breathing stutters and the pulse comes to a stop under his fingers. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Harry stands, face stoic as he walks around to help lift Louis up from the ground, arm wrapping around his waist as Louis cried, their eyes scanning over the valley. Corpses littered the ground, the grass bloody and the air filled with residual fear of an animal with no escape, “It didn’t eat them. It’s killing for sport.”</span>
</p>
<hr/><p>
  <span>Niall feels fury fumble his fingers as he brings the Walkie Talkie to his lips, “Harry, we have a situation here,” but all he got was static and he cursed softly in Gaelic.</span>
</p>
<hr/><p>
  <span>Louis stepped through the wreckage, eyes widening as he took in the smashed sphere, broken glass littering the forest floor. He saw Harry yank a tooth from the metal frame but then sunlight glinted off something and he rushed over to the smashed phone, shaking as he picked it up, “No no no.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>A hand settled on the back of his neck and Louis fought not to sink into the touch as Harry pointed to muddy imprints of two shoe sizes, “Hey, they made it out.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Pushing off the ground, Louis didn’t hesitate to run the trail left behind, Harry close behind him. They come to a cliff, next to a flowing waterfall, and Louis feels his eyes widen, “My god, they jumped.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Harry nodded, voice holding a bit of pride or maybe awe, “Brave kids.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Liza! Bear!” He saw Harry jump in surprise at the desperation behind his shouting and Louis went to continue but a hand clamped over his mouth and he was pulled into Harry’s chest, shushed firmly by the larger man. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Louis punched Harry’s chest, annoyance itching his nose as he snarled, “Hey! I am not one of your damn animals!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The look Harry gave him made Louis feel like an idiot, but he stood his ground, arms crossed defiantly, “Listen, those kids are still alive, but you and I will not be if you continue to scream like that.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Feeling quite scolded, Louis lowered his voice to a whisper, gesturing to Harry and the footprints wildly, “So...You can pick up their scent, can't you? Uh, track their footprints?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Harry looked down at him, “I was with the Navy, not the Navajo.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“So then what should we do? What do you suggest we do?” Louis was impatient, distinctly feeling like they were running out of time. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You head back. I’ll find them.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Louis scowled, “No.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Harry raised his eyebrows, “You really gonna argue with me, little one?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I am not little and yes, I will be arguing with you because you will not find them,” Louis huffed, “</span>
  <em>
    <span>We </span>
  </em>
  <span>will find them.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Harry is clearly annoyed and not the least bit amused, “You'll last two minutes in there. Less, in those ridiculous shoes.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Louis would take offence at the comment but glancing down at his dress shoes, he will admit they’re not ideal. So he pops the first few buttons of his shirt and rolls up the sleeves. Harry just stares at him blankly, “What is that supposed to mean?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It means I’m ready, dumbass,” Louis huffed, </span>
  <em>
    <span>this is exactly why you hate him</span>
  </em>
  <span>, he reminded himself, </span>
  <em>
    <span>even if he is risking his life to help you and looks unfairly attractive while doing it. </span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“Fine,” Harry ties his hair back and Louis does his best not to stare, “Let's get one thing straight. I'm in charge out here. You do everything I say, exactly as I say it.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>As always, to cover any nerves Louis cocks a hip and raises an eyebrow, “Excuse me?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Harry must’ve seen something inside of him that reflected the fear he actually felt, because he smiled lightly, a dimple poking out, “Just relax. It's just like taking a stroll through the woods...</span>
  <span>65 million years ago.”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Comforting, </span>
  </em>
  <span>Louis thought as Harry adjusted the gun he was carrying, jawline tense and sharp from where Louis was standing. Shaking his head, he dodges around Harry, walking toward the forest aware of the eyes. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oi, Styles, stop staring at my arse!” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He heard a smug laugh but no denial as Harry jogged to catch up and they disappeared into the trees. </span>
</p>
<hr/><p>
  <span>Harry hears the rumble of an engine, locks eyes with Louis and they both take off toward the sound, dodging branches and roots until they come to an old structure, some sort of garage. He sees the tire tracks in the dirt, and then crouches down and swipes a dirty flannel from the floor, “This one of theirs?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Louis nodded, “Yeah,” he pointed in the direction the tracks were going, “That road leads straight back to the park.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Harry hummed in acknowledgement, shuffling around the shelves curiously, he grabs a pair of jumper cables with about ten layers of dust on them and turns back to the old Jeep, “How did they even get one of these started?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He goes to open the hood, Louis sliding up beside him when they hear a boom, the ceiling shaking as dust filters down. Harry automatically wraps an arm around Louis as they flinch down. Another boom, a footstep, and Harry pushes Louis to the far side, crouching down onto the floor as a large jaw poked its way into the empty space left by the other jeep. Familiar white skin and hot breath made Harry flinch, hardly daring to breath as Louis clutched to his arm. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>To Harry’s relief, the </span>
  <em>
    <span>Idominus</span>
  </em>
  <span> retreated, leaving Louis to sigh, hands still wrapped around his bicep. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>The side wall collapsed, a roar filling the room as they scrambled up, a scared shout leaving Louis’ lips as they began to run. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Too soon, </span>
  </em>
  <span>Harry thought, </span>
  <em>
    <span>I knew it couldn’t have been that easy. </span>
  </em>
  
</p><p>
  <span>The sound of destruction followed them, but as they twisted a strange path through denser trees, it must have split off and began heading for something else. Louis made a call next to him, already beginning to follow the creature despite Harry’s shock that they weren't running in the opposite direction. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Lowery, we found her. South of the Gyrosphere Valley, between the old park and the Aviary.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Harry could make out a voice from the other end, “</span>
  <em>
    <span>Wait, are you following the dinosaur?”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>He could practically hear the eyeroll in Louis’ voice, too busy running after a monster to double check, “Yes. Get ACU out here. Real guns this time.”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“ACU is airborne. They took the helicopter.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>Louis slowed, “What? Who's flying it?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Harry watches Louis huff as they emerge from the foliage, his phone shoved back into his pocket, just in time to watch the helicopter crash through the Aviary, Masrani down with it. Louis’ mouth dropped into an ‘o’ eyes wide. Harry grabbed his wrist, eyes settling on the hundreds of prehistoric birds flying toward them, and dragging him back toward the cover of the trees, “Trees! The trees! Let’s go!”</span>
</p>
<hr/><p>
  <span>The next time Louis’ phone rings their back on the main road and he halts, Harry running ahead as he picks up the call. </span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Louis!”</span>
  </em>
  <span> It was Eleanor, </span>
  <em>
    <span>“We spotted the boys on surveillance.They're approaching the west gate. I'm headed there now.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>It was like a large weight amid a crushing ton had been lifted off his chest and Louis felt dizzy with relief, “Okay. Stay right there. I'm on my way. Stay right with them.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He hangs up just as Harry calls out to him, revving up a motorbike, “Get on! Let’s go!”</span>
</p>
<hr/><p>
  <span>The park is a frenzy of chaos, and Louis fights not to focus on the disorganization of it all as he sprints into it head first. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>A mechanical voice bleeds through the speakers as they get clear of the ACU building, </span>
  <em>
    <span>“All units take position on boardwalk. Use liquid tranquilizers. Do not fire live ammunition.” </span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>They meld into a group of ACU officers and Harry shoots at the birds, his targets dropping like flies as he turns to Louis, gesturing them to run ahead, “Come on, little one!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>They sprint through the frenzy, Louis really finding his lack of long legs annoying as he strains to see over running people. He climbs up onto a car’s hood as Harry stands nearby, looking like an adonis in the late afternoon light, arms flexing as he continued to fire. Pieces of his hair had fallen from the mess of a bun he had forced them into, the curls brushing across his cheeks. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Louis would love to stare at him but his eyes caught on a familiar mop of brown hair, “Bear! Liza!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>They were further down the boardwalk, and Louis waved his arms trying to get their attention. He heard Harry’s voice call out a warning as a Pterodactyl approached Bear and Liza from behind, “No, hold your…” a smaller flying dinosaur landed on Harry’s back, clawing at him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The shot was already fired, the tranquilizer stilling the bird as it began to slide, Bear grabbing his sister’s arm to try and get them out of the way. Louis tore his eyes away and jumped down, grabbing Harry’s gun from where it had fallen. He used the butt of it to hit the head of the violent creature before lifting the gun, closing an eye and firing, the dart sinking into its neck. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He offered a hand to Harry who grabbed it, and hauled himself to his feet. Louis offered the gun back revelling in the pride and slight shock on Harry’s face, “Oops,” he smiled. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Harry grabbed the gun with one hand and the other went to the small of Louis’ back, skirting dangerously close to the curve of his arse. He was offered a dimpled grin, “Hi,” Harry whispered back, before tugging Louis forward and knocking their lips together. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Louis had kissed Harry before, but right now that seems like centuries ago as the smell of vanilla, tobacco, and sweat clouded his senses. Harry was a really good kisser and Louis groaned at the sensuality of the fast, hungry kiss that sent heat rushing through him. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>When Louis finally pulled away, Harry was smirking smugly and he was breathing heavily, wanting to forget that they were basically in an apocalypse and lean back in, but an “Uncle Louis?!” broke his attention as he turned to see Liza and Bear gaping at them from a hundred feet away, the crowd frantic between them. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“My God! Thank God! Thank God! What happened? What is this?” He thumbed over a scrape on Liza’s chin, “Are you okay? Where did you go? Why didn't you come back? I was so worried about you.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Liza just pointed at Harry who had walked closer to them, back to a stoic face, but with swollen lips and a glint in his eyes, “Who’s that?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Stuttering, Louis just blurted out, “We work together.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Harry gestured to the chaos, face still, but Louis could see the twinkle in his eye, “We gotta go.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah, okay. Come on, come on,” he ushered his nephew and niece toward Harry and the four of them made their way toward the control room. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Louis’ phone rang and he answered it, “Lowerey, we’re on our way back to you.”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>"That's a bad idea. The board assigned emergency ops to iNGen's private security division. This guy Azoff is in charge. And he has this insane plan to use the Raptors to hunt the Indominus.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>The four of them came to a halt before a pair of gates, “What do you mean ‘use the raptors?’”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Harry scowled next to him, “Son of a bitch.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You shouldn’t say bitch,” Liza told the taller man matter-of-factly, ignoring the fact that she just said it herself.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The gates pushed inward, like something was banging against them harshly, and Louis tilted his eyebrows in confusion. Then they broke open and a crowd of people rushed through, trying to get out of the park. Eyes widening, Louis gestured to the Wrangler and the four of them got in as fast as they could. Harry’s eyes bore down on Louis’ the weight of them warm but intimidating, “Take the kids. Get them someplace safe.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Louis refrained from rolling his eyes, buckling his seat belt in reply, and Harry turned to the wheel, turning the key in the ignition, “Okay then, here goes nothing.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>They backed up through the streets, the wave of people getting closer and closer to them until Owen was able to pull off to an exit, “That did not feel safe,” he breathed, watching as the crowd got thinner and thinner. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Can we stay with you?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Louis turned to Liza with a grimace that turned to a sweeter smile, “I am never leaving you as long as you live.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Bear laughed, “No, him,” pointing at Harry the same time Liza did, “Yeah, definitely him.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Harry winked at Louis, a smug smirk tugging the corners of lips in an intoxicatingly attractive way, but Louis just shook his head with zero malice because he wasn’t planning on leaving Harry either. </span>
</p>
<hr/><p>
  <span>Harry wasn’t sure when he got angry, but he remembers slamming to a halt and stepping out of the Jeep, red clouding the corners of his vision growing when Jeff grins at him, arms spreading wide, “The mother hen had finally arrived.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Taking a deep breath in, Harry exhales and brings his fist up, punching Jeff straight in the jaw, the older man crying out as he bent in half, hand gripping delicately at his chin, “Get the hell out of here and stay away from my animals.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He hears another person get out of the car and then Louis is standing next to him, hands on his hips, snarling at Jeff, “Azoff, you wanted this to happen, you son of a bitch!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“How many people have to die before this mission starts to make sense to you?” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Niall comes up behind Jeff, smiling grimly at Harry before grunting out, “It’s not a mission, jackass. It’s a field test.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Temperament had never been Jeff’s strong suit and his face turned red, arms flying out angrily as he got into Harry’s face, hoping to force him to take a step back, “This is an InGen situation now. Okay, there are gonna be cruise ships that show up here at first light. Everybody's gonna get off this island. You're gonna watch a news story tomorrow about how you all saved lives. No, better yet, how your animals saved lives!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Harry didn’t move, just remained emotionless in the face of Jeff’s anger, he felt a small hand clutch the back of his shirt and felt Louis press slightly closer, quivering. He knew that Louis wasn’t scared, Louis was faced with angry, screaming men with god complexes every day. Harry completely understood the trembling he felt against his back was because this time, Louis was angrier than the one yelling. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Niall gives him a look, the shared fear for their Raptors going unsaid, “They’ve never been out of containment,” he shook his head, “It’s crazy.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He was right of course, letting them out for something like this, the first time ever, was suicidal, dangerous, and just plain insane, but as Jeff pressed a finger into his chest, Harry knew that his next words would probably leave no choice, “This is happening! With or without you.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Let’s move it out!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Niall walked up to him, “This is bad.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Harry nodded even though it wasn’t a question, “I’m not letting them go out there without me.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Would it be so bad if Azoff got eaten by a raptor?” Louis grumbled, stepping away slightly, and Harry felt a stubborn frown fall on his lips, resisting the urge to pull Louis back into his side. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Niall just grinned at Louis as if he was just now seeing him, an ironic smile tilting his words, “I suppose not, but Harold here was talking about the Raptors, not the humans. I’m Niall.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hi, Niall, I’m Louis,” he lifted his hand in a friendly gesture, before turning to look at the bustle of InGen around them, “They’re really doing this?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Harry’s smile was dry, empty, “Afraid so, little one. I’m afraid you've been working with idiots.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’ve been aware of that fact since I started this park,” Louis huffed, turning and walking back to the Jeep, hips swaying, aware of Harry’s eyes drifting over his curves.</span>
</p>
<hr/><p>
  <span>Harry looked around the table, soldiers glancing down at the map as he snk as much authority in his voice as he could, if they were doing this then he would be the one calling the shots, “We know that she is in sector five. This is a game we call hide-and-seek. It's a scent drill. We've done it about a thousand times with these animals. When they get on target, and they will get on target, wait to engage.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He sighs, “Velociraptors are pack hunters. They like to herd the animal into a kill zone. That's when we take our shot. Get a clear shot, wait on my command, and give her everything you got. We got one good target, gentlemen. Do not shoot my Raptors,” pausing he takes in the grim, annoyed looks around the table, tilting his head he corrects, “Please.”</span>
</p>
<hr/><p>
  <span>Blue is looking at him, the snarl in her eyes, bubbling up as she snaps at him as much as she can through the metal, “Easy, Blue. Easy.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Harry tried to fit as much apology into his eyes as he can, hand soothing the side of her head, “Attagirl, you don’t scare me,” he adjusts the camera on her head, the technology unnatural and probably uncomfortable. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Harry.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He turns to see Liza and Bear leaning against the bars, eyes glancing at the contained Raptors curiously. Liza, her pink shirt torn and dirty, seems unperturbed by the fact she’s been chased by a ravenous dinosaur and grins at the Raptors, “Are they safe?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The toothy smile fades when Harry sighs and steps closer to them, “No, they’re not.”  </span>
</p><p>
  <span>She just looks sad now, as if she can understand how badly Harry wishes they were safe, “What are their names?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Cracking a small smile, Harry turns and points to each of them, “Well, you got Charlie. There's Echo. Here is Delta. This one's called Blue.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Blue’s eyes are fixed on them, defiance somewhere buried deep despite her loyalty to the other Raptors and Harry supposed, him, “She's the beta.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Bear, who had been quiet, following the conversation with his hands stuffed in his jean pockets, tilted his head, “Who’s the alpha?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You’re looking at him kid,” he throws his hands out with a confident glint in his eyes that disguises his worry, it’s worth it when Liza giggles and Bear cracks a smile. He feels his own lips curve into a smile, small but genuine.</span>
</p>
<hr/><p>
  <span>Louis was positive that he had never been more filthy in his life. His shirt was torn and smudged with mud, gaping open at the top slightly, his collar bone jutting out sharply. His grey trousers had remained mostly intact, with small tears in places where glass or branches caught and scraped at his skin. And for the first time in a long time he didn’t care that he looked unorganized, he was perfectly aware that this was quite literally the only way you could look after running for your life in a jungle and fighting to help kill a rogue asse- a rogue </span>
  <em>
    <span>dinosaur</span>
  </em>
  <span> that had wreaked havoc and was so much more than a number on a spreadsheet. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Liza and Bear were alive, Harry was alive and less of a   than he originally thought, he was alive. It seemed like a bloody miracle at this point and maybe that ebbed away some of his need for control or allowed for his hidden need to be controlled to come to the forefront. He pushed his way past a soldier, looking for the familiar sight of Harry, his hair tied back messily, shirt too tight and boots large and clunky. Finding Harry was easy, but what Louis wasn’t expecting was to see Liza and Bear talking to him, fascinated smiles on their faces. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hey,” Louis slid up next to them, hand ruffling through Liza’s hair which miraculously still had her characteristic bow in it. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Uncle Louis, did you know that Harry’s the alpha?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Louis raised an eyebrow at Harry who looked like he was holding in a laugh, settling on smirking like he always does, smug, warm, and annoyingly attractive, “Oh, is he?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“The protective van-bus thing is here, armoured and all, should be safe for you three,” It’s Niall and Louis turns with a smile. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Thanks, Niall, would you mind leading Bear and Liza over there?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Course not,” he moves his head, “follow me, youngins.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Louis watches them walk away until they’re far enough for him to turn back to Harry, “Alpha? Really?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Harry laughed and Louis felt something inside him preen at the fact that he got Harry to laugh, “Yeah, don’t act like you’re surprised, little one. I distinctly remember how you react to taking my orders.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Face flushing red, Louis looked away, “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He did, oh he remembered quite well. The disaster of their date had all come about because of what Harry was referring to. AKA the fact that when they first met, Louis had found himself “consulting” with Harry in his bungalow quite often.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Hands above your head.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Louis whined at the order, hips pressing up into empty air as he lifted his hands to rest on the pillow above his head. </span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Look at you,” his eyes snapped open to see Harry leaning over him, thumb pressing into the corner of his mouth, “such a good boy for me. Listen so well, just love taking orders, don’t you, baby?”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>A throat cleared, Harry was biting at his bottom lip, when Louis snapped back to the present, stuttering around the embarrassed blush covering his face. “I just wanted to tell you to be careful, I know you’re worried about this. Scared, even,” he mumbled out. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Louis saw the change in his face, the clench of his jaw and the way Harry’s eyes shifted to something darker and more serious. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Are you scared?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He wanted to shake his head because Louis Tomlinson wasn’t scared of anything, but the word stumbled out before he could stop it, “Yes.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Harry stepped closer, something in his eyes that was predatory, and Louis had a feeling that this is what the Raptors saw in him, “I won’t let anything happen to you, baby.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I know,” Louis’ filter had apparently stopped working because he hadn’t meant to respond so quickly. He blushed more, fingers tapping at the bars nervously. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Liza or Bear either, you’ll be okay, I swear I’ll do everything I can to protect you.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Just take care of yourself,” the unsaid drifts through the air, heavy and cold, </span>
  <em>
    <span>please don’t die. </span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>Harry’s hands covered his, “I always do,” he winked, “now how about a good luck kiss.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Louis rolled his eyes, stepping away from the bar, hands sliding out from under Harry’s, “Nice try.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He smirked, turning away, only to hear the gate open and feel a hand wrap around his wrist. He was pulled back into a warm chest and he blinked up at Harry through his eyelashes, mouth opening to chew him out, but Harry’s smug smirk was already present, “It wasn’t a question,” and then any protest Louis had was swallowed by Harry’s kiss. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>It was different from the first kiss, which had been hungry and in the heat of the moment, adrenaline fuelled passion, this one felt familiar, like goodbye, sweet, slow, and sad. It had Louis’ eyes glistening and his mind dizzy when they parted, “Good luck,” he whispered, pressing his forehead against Harry’s chest. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>It sounded a lot like goodbye when Harry pressed a kiss to his head, shaky hands shifting through Louis’ hair as the sun fell below the horizon, sky darkening to a dark purple as a distant roar filled the air. </span>
</p>
<hr/><p>
  <span>Louis found Liza and Bear leaning against the back of the armoured truck, and he smiled at them trying to push confidence and reassurance into his words as he opened the metal doors, “See? Totally safe. All right, get in,” they clambered in, silent, “Come on. Get in there.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Hands on his hips, he looked at them with a shaky smile, “If you need me, I'll be right up front. Just open that window. Okay? Put your seatbelts on.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Apparently there weren’t any seatbelts and Louis scowled, “Um, just hold hands,” and closed the doors, walking around and sliding into the driver's seat. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He hears their muffled conversation and feels a sappy smile spread over his lips, proud that Bear seemed to be exactly like his dad, a great big brother. Starting the car and following the group, Louis glances down at the tablet as the little window slides open and Liza’s head pops through, Bear following. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>They watch Harry riding on a motorcycle, following close to the Raptors, his mouth set in determination, “Your boyfriend’s badass,” Bear tells him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Louis just smiles, </span>
  <em>
    <span>yes, he was. </span>
  </em>
</p>
<hr/><p>
  <span>“They’re slowing down,” Niall points to a screen with the blips of the Raptors. Harry sees their form and knows they’re getting near, closing in on the target. He leans into his mic, “They’ve got something.”</span>
</p>
<hr/><p>
  <em>
    <span>“They’ve got something,” </span>
  </em>
  <span>Louis feels the knots in his stomach get tighter at Harry’s words, and he grabs the window, sliding it shut, “No no, you guys are not gonna watch this. Keep that window closed.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He doesn’t particularly want to watch it, but his eyes remain locked on the tablet, unable to look away. </span>
</p>
<hr/><p>
  <span>Harry crouches down, leaning against the fallen tree, gun at the ready as Delta, Echo, Charlie, and Blue come to a stop. The soldiers line up on either side of him, Niall settling to his left as the </span>
  <em>
    <span>Indominus Rex </span>
  </em>
  <span>comes into view. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>It’s unclear what initially tells Harry that something is wrong, that something is seriously wrong, but it clicks when the </span>
  <em>
    <span>Indominus </span>
  </em>
  <span>lets out a sound and Blue </span>
  <em>
    <span>responds</span>
  </em>
  <span>. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Niall must notice it too because he sounds confused, “Something’s wrong. They’re communicating.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>It hit Harry and he suddenly wished that the weight was enough to push him underground as his throat went dry, “I know why they wouldn’t tell us what it’s made of.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Why?” Niall’s voice was shaky and Harry knew he must have come to the same conclusion but was too scared to accept it. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“That thing’s part Raptor.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>All of the Raptors, he wasn’t sure if they were still his, turned to look at him, orange eyes giving away nothing. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Jeff’s voice filters through the comms, </span>
  <em>
    <span>“Light it up! Engage!”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>Harry flinches when the guns go off, his fingers numb as he begins shooting himself. A missile is fired, the explosion flashing hot over Harry’s eyes and he sees the </span>
  <em>
    <span>Indominus </span>
  </em>
  <span>stumble, wounded, before it’s running off again, practically unaffected. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He’s up, with a group of InGen and Niall, walking toward the burning trees, “Watch your six. Raptors got a new alpha.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>That’s when the first man screamed. </span>
</p>
<hr/><p>
  <span>Niall loses Harry in the chaos, his heart hammering as he catches a flash of blue through the trees. He starts to run, feet fast, the sound of a hunting Raptor fast behind him. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He dives for the open end of a log, his pistol tight in his hands, a last ditch effort because if he shot Blue he really would be done for. The wood crumpled as Blue clawed at it, “No! No! Blue!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Everything stopped when the name registered and an orange eye was blinking down at him, teeth gnashing before the rumble of a motorcycle and familiar whistle had Blue running off, and Niall breathed out, shaky. </span>
</p>
<hr/><p>
  <span>“Is everyone dead?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Louis jumped at Liza’s voice, the sadness in it made his heart hurt, “No, everyone’s fine.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Don’t lie to her,” Louis glares at Bear. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I thought I told you guys to keep that window shut,” he tries to sound stern, but it’s more chaotic than anything. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I wanna go home,” tears are brewing in Liza’s eyes, and Bear is wrapping an arm around her. Louis wants to cry too, “I know, love, and you will. I promise, tomorrow you will be home,” Louis winced slightly, “and your father will never let me see you again.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>A hand slaps against the window and Louis screams when it leaves a bloody print, slipping down as the man it belongs to yells, “Get out of here! Go! They’re coming!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He fumbles with the key, and presses down on the gas hard, “Just hold on back there!” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Something else hits the window as Louis begins to take off down the road, this time shattering as a Raptor tries to take a chunk out of his arm, Louis screaming and presses down harder, the engine groaning as it speeds up, the Raptor thrown out of the space and onto the road. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He hears shouting in the back of the truck and he opens the window, fear in his voice, “Are you guys okay?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>All he gets is Bear shouting, “Did you see that?” he sounds on the verge of proud hysteria and Louis doesn’t know if he should be worried or not, and then Liza’s poking her head through with a grin, “I can’t wait to tell Dad!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Louis pales, shaking his head emphatically, “Oh no, please don’t. Do not tell your father about that, ever.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Harry!” “Harry!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Louis’s eyes whip up to see Harry on his motorcycle in the rearview mirror, coming around to ride beside them. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We gotta get indoors, follow me.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Shaking by the time he presses the right button on the walkie talkie, trailing behind Harry, “Lowerey, we’re headed your way. Call in a chopper.”</span>
</p>
<hr/><p>
  <span>Harry is exhausted by the time they run up the steps and into the Innovation Centre, desperation, adrenaline, and his promise to Louis the only things keeping him upright. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Come on, come on,” Louis’ panting, half shouting as he doges around and exhibit and points down a hallway, “that way…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He trails off and Harry halts, Liza and Ben in front of him, he hears the confusion in Louis’ voice as he walks toward the empty lab, “They evacuated the lab,” and then sharper, deadly, “What the hell are you doing?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Jeff Azoff slides into Harry’s view and he resists the urge to raise his gun and shoot the bastard, especially when he smiles lewdly, “That’s above your paygrade, darlin.’”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Where’s Henry?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Harry wants to reach out and soothe Louis, but his boy is already farther away, fists clenching as he glares at Jeff. “Dr. Wu? Well, he works for us.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Liza is peeking at a computer screen, stepping up closer to Harry, “That’s not a dinosaur.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Jeff’s laugh sends the worst kind of chills down Harry’s spine, “No, it ain't, kid. But somebody's gotta make sure that this company has a future. Imagine, that one, a fraction of the size, deadly, intelligent, able to hide from the most advanced military technology. A living weapon unlike anything we've ever seen. You see…Millions of years of evolution,what did we learn? Nature is the gift that just…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>A snarl comes from an open door and Delta is edging into the room, eyes dark. Harry’s eyes are wide and he grabs Louis’ wrist pulling him back and out of the way. He pushed Liza and Bear behind him as they watched Delta corner Jeff against a glass wall. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Easy. Easy, boy,” </span>
  <em>
    <span>Girl, </span>
  </em>
  <span>Harry corrects mentally, “Easy. Hey, hey. We're on the same side, right? Right? Easy.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Delta freezes, eyeing the hand Jeff held out curiously, the man seems to think he’s in the clear because he smiles slightly, “I'm on your side.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Harry winced when Delta’s tail swished through the air and sent her Jaws snapping shut around the outstretched arm, the spray of blood and resulting scream had Harry ushering them out of the room as Delta went for the kill. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Louis pointed down the hall, the way to the control room, but as soon as they lunged to go that way, Delta smashed through the lab wall and fell, blocking the way. They sprinted the other way, Liza slapping down on one of the projection buttons as they moved for the exit. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>It slowed Delta down and Harry tried to breathe a sigh of relief but as they got down the stairs, Blue was there, snarling, Echo approaching from their left, and the doors bang open, Delta snarling at them from behind. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Harry let’s the gun drop, his hair loose around his shoulder, flying around his face as he held out a hand, “That's how it is?” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Blue tilts her head, familiarity in her eyes, “Easy. Easy.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>She snapped her jaws but there wasn’t any malice behind it as Harry reached and undid the headset, “Easy. That's it.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The</span>
  <em>
    <span> Indominus </span>
  </em>
  <span>appears, and Blue turns, listening to the communication from the hybrid before turning back to Harry and bobbing her head. He felt a proud smile spread across his face, </span>
  <em>
    <span>the alpha was back</span>
  </em>
  <span>. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Then, the Raptors attacked. </span>
</p>
<hr/><p>
  <span>Louis stared in amazement as the Raptors ran at the </span>
  <em>
    <span>Indominus</span>
  </em>
  <span>, Blue first, knocked aside, but then Harry was whistling and the other two, Delta and Echo he thinks, jump onto its back, clawing at the skin. Harry starts shooting at the </span>
  <em>
    <span>Indominus </span>
  </em>
  <span>as Louis starts running behind Liza and Bear, jumping into a booth and taking shelter. Liza starts muttering under her breath, “24, 50. We need more.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“More what?” Louis was out of breath, heart practically beating out of his chest. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Teeth. We need more teeth.”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Teeth</span>
  </em>
  <span>, </span>
  <em>
    <span>where could he find enough teeth?</span>
  </em>
  <span> His face blanched, “Okay, so you just wait here. It's gonna be fine,” he grabs a flare and a walkie talkie, bracing himself. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He stands up, legs shaking and he eventually gets over the little bar, flare clutched in his hands. He sees Harry do a double take as he sprints across the courtyard, dodging debris. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Louis presses the walkie talkie to his mouth, “Lowerey, are you still there?”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Hey, yeah, I’m here, where the hell are you?”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“I need you,” </span>
  <em>
    <span>oh god, was he really doing this? </span>
  </em>
  <span>“to open Paddock 9.”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“I think you’re breaking up because I could’ve sworn you just said to open Paddock 9.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“Lowerey, be a man for once in your life and just fucking do it!”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Why do you have to make it personal?</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>The door creaked open and Louis took a deep breath, lighting the flare and holding it out as dark, beady eyes flickered in the dark, a large shape moving toward him. His chest was heaving, as the T-Rex stomped toward him. He stepped backwards, completely aware of the terror surging through him, but he forced himself to be steady as he turned and ran, the T-Rex following behind him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>If someone told him that he would be running from the largest dinosaur to the largest hybrid dinosaur without screaming, Louis would have laughed in your face and gone on a rant about how all their safety precautions would never allow any such situation to happen. </span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Being alive this morning was so much easier,</span>
  </em>
  <span> Louis groaned, dodged under the fossil reconstruction of the T-Rex, and threw the flare, hitting the </span>
  <em>
    <span>Indominus </span>
  </em>
  <span>in the side of the neck, the flare bouncing off before falling to ground, dying into nothing. It drew its attention from the booth where Louis realized Liza and Bear had been. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>The skeleton shatters behind him and a piece of bone slices his arm, Louis cries out, stumbling to get as far away from the fight as possible. Harry is in front of him then, Liza and Ben in between them, and then they watch in a sort of horrified fascination as the </span>
  <em>
    <span>Indominus </span>
  </em>
  <span>and the </span>
  <em>
    <span>Tyrannosaurus Rex</span>
  </em>
  <span> clash together, the combination of their roars shaking Louis to his core. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He wasn’t aware that he gripped Harry’s hand until the younger man was squeezing his back gently, “Let’s go.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Louis nods, his breathing still heavy, as he turns to the fight and watches the </span>
  <em>
    <span>Indominus </span>
  </em>
  <span>throw the T-Rex to the ground, he felt fear wrap around his throat, but he managed to choke out, “Run!” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>They looked back as they ran, dodging the wreckage of the once pristine park, and watched as the </span>
  <em>
    <span>Indominus </span>
  </em>
  <span>held the T-Rex down by its neck and opened its jaws, ready for the killing blow. It froze, eyes fixing on something and Louis stumbled to a stop, eyes fixing on Blue who was running toward the </span>
  <em>
    <span>Indominus, </span>
  </em>
  <span>a defiant growling noise echoing through the heavy night air. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Harry’s grabbing Louis’ hand again and pulling him along as the fight begins again, moving furiously toward them. They dodge into a store, screaming and halting when Blue smashes through the window, shaking off the glass before reengaging in the fight. They stayed there because there was nowhere else to run except the boardwalk which was a bit full with a raging T-Rex and the slowly losing </span>
  <em>
    <span>Indominus Rex. </span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>They watched the bloody, white beast fall to the ground, and Louis feels like shouting because it’s finally over, but then the joy, the relief he feels fades as it rises again, roaring as Blue and the </span>
  <em>
    <span>Tyrannosaurus </span>
  </em>
  <span>close in. He wants to cry, curl up in a ball, fall to the ground and just scream out the tears because he just wants it to be over. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>The jaws that snap around the </span>
  <em>
    <span>Indominus’ </span>
  </em>
  <span>neck don’t belong to Blue or the T-Rex</span>
  <em>
    <span>,</span>
  </em>
  <span> but to the </span>
  <em>
    <span>Mosasaurus</span>
  </em>
  <span> who must have sensed prey near the surface and attacked, sinking its teeth into the bitten flesh and dragging the struggling dinosaur back into the water. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>The T-Rex turns to Blue who just chirps roughly, some sort of understanding that the enemy had already been taken care of passing between them. He breathes when the larger beast ambles off, leaving the fight and the resulting wreckage behind him. Harry is already walking out of the store and Louis follows, albeit a little more reluctant, Liza and Bear trailing behind him. Blue looks at Harry and Louis can see that the trainer is sad, the set of his shoulders and twitch in his fingers, like he’s trying not to reach out for the animal as he slowly shakes his head and Blue takes off into the night. </span>
</p>
<hr/><p>
  <span>“Harry!” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Harry smiles when he sees Niall lumbering toward him, limbs clumsily bumping a few people along the way. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Niel, I’ve never been happier to hear your voice!” he pulls the Irishman into a hug, “I was scared you didn’t make it.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Niall laughs, pulling back to smile at Harry, “You know me, I’m not going out unless it’s with a pint in my hand!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>It’s Harry’s turn to laugh, the feeling strange after the last twenty-four hours, but it’s nice, freeing and he looks over to see Louis sitting with Liza and Bear, a paramedic wrapping gauze around his injured arm. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“And I know you,” Niall winked at Harry, “Go get your boy, Styles.”</span>
</p>
<hr/><p>
  <span>Louis thanked the paramedic and turned his attention back to Liza whose head was in his lap and Bear who was leaning against his good arm. His eyes caught on a familiar, ambling figure with brown hair and puppy dog eyes practically running toward them. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Your parents are here,” they all stood up, and Louis stood back as he watched Liam embarace Liza, his wife, Maya wrapping around Bear, with tears in her eyes. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Liam was releasing Liza, who attached to her mother and brother, as Louis’ older brother walked over to him and smashed him in the biggest hug Louis had ever received. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m so sorry,” he practically sobbed. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Shh, Lou. I’m just glad you’re okay, I was so scared,” Louis hugged back fiercely, his face burying itself into Liam’s soft coat. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He pulled back and Liam looked him over, “Are you okay?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>When Louis nodded and wiped at his eyes, Liam gave him a look that said, </span>
  <em>
    <span>I’m not done coddling you</span>
  </em>
  <span>, and turned to hug Bear. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I hate you, you know that,” Louis gasped at the voice from behind him and was wrapped in another hug. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Zayn, what are you doing here?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>His best friend smelled like he always did, smoke, flowers, and weed, “You almost died, Lou, I flew out here as soon as I heard about the Island.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Louis snuggled into his friend, “I think I might need that vacation.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Zayn laughed, tugging Louis back, eyes flitting over to another part of the room, “I think you might want to go with my other suggestion,” then he was gone with a wink, greeting Liam with a smile. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Louis turned to look at what Zayn had been and found Harry, smiling down at an older man, hand pushing through his hair. Their eyes met and Harry smiled at him, nose scrunching up adorably. Louis found his feet moving before he even really thought about it, and then he was face to face with Harry Styles, who was looking down at him with the greenest eyes Louis had ever seen. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hi,” Louis breathed, heart stuttering in his chest. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oops,” Harry mocked, head tilting to the side, nose twitching as his dimple poked out. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“So, what do we do now?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Harry’s tongue teased over his lip, as he shrugged, “We stick together,” his face turned mock-serious, “for survival.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Louis laughed, “If we want to survive, I’m afraid we’ll also have to deal with that group,” he shoved his thumb in the direction of his family, where Liam, Maya, Liza, Bear, Zayn, and now Niall stood, all grinning cheekily. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Harry grinned, “Expected nothing less,” his face turned serious, “one more thing.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Tilting his head, Louis gestured for him to continue, confusion furrowing his brow, but Harry was already gripping his chin in one hand, the other pressing at the small of Louis’ back, as he leant down and kissed him. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Now that he was able to kiss Harry without some apocalyptic doom hanging over their heads, Louis went pliant, hands gripping Harry’s shirt. His teeth tugged on Harry’s bottom lip causing the younger man to jolt, his fingers tightening on Louis’ chin as his tongue teased over the part of Louis’ mouth. He got lost as Harry started to lick into his mouth, head swimming as he whimpered softly. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Louis pulled back to breathe, chest heaving, staring up into Harry’s darkening eyes, “That’s necessary for survival?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“</span>
  <em>
    <span>Essential</span>
  </em>
  <span>,” he breathed, the word brushing over Louis’ lips and drawing him to see how it tasted. They kissed again and Louis could hear Liza’s happy shout of, “Go, Uncle Louis!” and Niall’s rolling laugh as Zayn repeated his advice and then Liam’s scolding about language. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He couldn’t help the curl of his lips as he smiled into the kiss, sighing happily into Harry’s mouth, </span>
  <em>
    <span>Essential. </span>
  </em>
</p>
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